Posted
by
Soulskillon Saturday February 21, 2009 @10:18AM
from the outside-looking-in dept.

mjasay writes "At the Mobile World Congress, Steve Ballmer took aim at Apple's closed iPhone ecosystem with an ironic plea for openness: 'Openness is central because it's the foundation of choice.' Ballmer has apparently forgotten his company's own efforts to vertically integrate hardware and software (Zune, XBox), its history of vertically integrating software (tying SharePoint into Office, IE, SQL Server, Active Directory, etc.), as well as years of illegally tying Windows to Internet Explorer that only the US Justice Department could undo. Indeed, Microsoft's effect on the browser market has pushed Mozilla to get involved in a recent European Commission action against the software giant, with Mozilla's Mitchell Baker recently declaring that 'A number of illegal activities were also involved in creating IE's market dominance,' now requiring government intervention to open up the browser market to fair competition. Putting aside Microsoft's own tainted reputation in the field of openness, is Ballmer right? Should Apple open up its iPhone platform to outside competition, both in terms of hardware and software?"

Microsoft did all the things listed out of necessity. That was the innovation
for PC industry to move further. Where as Apple is stiffling the innovation.
They are the bad guys. They need to open their system. You cannot expect the
same from MS because we are dealing with two different kinds of environment
and goals.
GO Ballmer be the champion for openness and also 3Es (Embarce, Extend and Extingush)
PS: Can you please mail me whatever that you are smoking?

You might think that only communists define and use open standards, but the truth is far worse. Look at the member bodies of the ISO such as ANSI, the so-called American National Standards Institute. Rearrange the letters and what do we find? That's right, NASI! Who else but fascist dictators would want to apply a single doctrine to all facets of life for every man, woman and child on the planet! Let the truth be known, only NASIs want open standards, the free world should forever remain insular, secretive and closed.